Luke’s Gospel: Blindness

This was enough for the blind man. Each day, he listened to the passing crowds in hopes that Jesus might come his way, and now it was happening.

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Those who are impaired by the loss of one of the five senses often compensate by extreme sensitivity in the remaining ones.
A blind beggar by the side of the road seemed to have performed this compensation by developing an acute sense of hearing and smell. In his position by the busy thoroughfare, he judged the profitability of each crowd of travelers as they proceeded past him. He knew the sounds of priests and Levites and he recognized the scent of Frankincense, the aroma of the Temple, on them as they talked of religious matters. Merchants were always in a hurry, speaking in short bursts of profits, potential, and receipts. Families, of course, traveled with a semi-circus of laughing children and noisy pets. Herdsmen shouted short commands to their beasts in transit to or from the market, the odors of animals and men performing an auditory duet for the blind man. He didn’t need to see the parade to assess its potential.

One day, something was different.
Agitated voices of all kinds of people coalesced around a particular approaching excitement. The wordless expressions of wonder and expectation revved up to an unusual pitch. Someone special was coming. The blind man tuned his sensitive ears in the direction of the excitement, seeking for some word-clue as to who was approaching his way. Finally, emerging from the cacophony of the road, a single name became almost a chant of expectation, “Jesus! Jesus! Jesus! Jesus is coming this way!”

He was ready.
In the company of the blind man’s life, those who cared for him, leading him to his place by the road and bringing him back home again at the end of the day, there had been frequent discussion of the prophet from Galilee. There were the usual theories about who He might be.

Certain facts found agreement as true history.
• He was of the house and line of King David.
• There was healing in His touch, and authority in His voice.

This was enough for the blind man. Each day, he listened to the passing crowds in hopes that Jesus might come his way, and now it was happening.

A Moment of Opportunity
When the moment finally came, a voice seldom used except for pitiful cries for alms sounded within the noise of the roadway.
“Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” Unthinking people, easily annoyed by the handicapped, tried to silence the man but he cried out all the more. Jesus stopped at his begging station asking, “What do you want Me to do for you?”

The answer was obvious but it was spoken clearly, words of hope from a dark world. “Lord, that I may receive my sight.”
It was that simple. Jesus spoke the word and sight returned to sightless eyes. The symphony of sound so familiar to the man now had a shining orchestra playing. Spinning once around a full circle, putting sight to sound, reorganizing his world, and the man settled his eyes on Jesus smiling the biggest smile of his life. Jesus was smiling, too. The man began praising God and following Jesus. No longer stranded in darkness by a single road, he had a Savior to follow and a road to travel and wonders to see along the way. Suddenly the crowd was unified in its praise of God—miracles can do that!

Scriptures:
Luke: 18:35-43 NKJV
Then it happened, as He was coming near Jericho, that a certain blind man sat by the road begging. And hearing a multitude passing by, he asked what it meant. So they told him that Jesus of Nazareth was passing by. And he cried out, saying, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” Then those who went before warned him that he should be quiet; but he cried out all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” So Jesus stood still and commanded him to be brought to Him. And when he had come near, He asked him, saying, “What do you want Me to do for you?” He said, “Lord, that I may receive my sight.” Then Jesus said to him, “Receive your sight; your faith has made you well.” And immediately he received his sight, and followed Him, glorifying God. And all the people, when they saw it, gave praise to God.

John 10:7-10 NKJV
Then Jesus said to them again, “Most assuredly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. All who ever came before Me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not hear them. I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture. The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.

Jeremiah 30:17a NIV
But I will restore you to health and heal your wounds, declares the Lord…

Prayer:
Lord Jesus, when I have compensated for my various impairments and settled for a life restricted, help me call out to You for healing. You have come to give me, not an impaired life, but a life of freedom and full mobility. With Your healing touch, the darkness of my mind can be flooded with light. With Your song, my silent soul can find its voice. With Your strength, my weakened limbs can grow strong again. With the balm of Your presence, my old wounds can finally heal. As the blind man called, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” Amen.

Song:
Reach Out and Touch the Lord
Traditional
Reach out and touch the Lord as He goes by.
You’ll find He’s not too busy to answer your cry.
He’s passing by this moment your needs to supply.
Reach out and touch the Lord as He goes by.

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About the Author

Full of passion for Jesus Christ, Stephen Phifer is a third-generation minister with more than three decades of experience as a pastoral artist, worship leader, and conductor.